I have a very fat cat.

One of Mally's favorite activities is to run across the living room and jump across the couch, beating me to the stairs. Well, Billy decided to follow her last night when I got home. Poor cat barely made it on top of the couch and then he toppled onto the floor.

If you ever see our two cats together, it's really quite funny. Billy is extra chubby and Mally is extra skinny. So if you put them together I guess I have two normal sized cats. It's not that Billy's excessive eating habits are starving Mally, either; whenever I feed them, he understands that Mally is his superior and he will wait until she goes in and sniffs the food. She is somewhat disinterested in food and hardly sticks around to eat. At this point, Billy will go in and eat his food. And then he will eat her food.

I have tried to come up with solutions which will stop Billy from eating so much and encourage Mally to eat more. The only thing I can think of is to shut Mally in the room with the food and to shut Billy out. The problem with this is that I am quite certain that Mally has taught herself to open doors, so she would let herself out of the room and Billy would come in. And then he would eat her food.

We've also tried the exercise thing with Billy. The best thing that works is to shine a laser light on the wall. He goes nuts...for about 5 minutes. And then he sits and stares at it, purrs for awhile, and falls asleep.

~

My cute SIL tagged me last week. I liked the idea of thinking of 8 things I wish for:

1. I wish that someday I will be able to play the piano part of Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue". (A Steinway would be nice to play it on, too.)

2. I wish that being a dance instructor/choreographer paid better. I often think that I gave up the best job I ever had to start my career.

3. I wish for some really cool scrapbook gadgets! Namely, the Ribbon Organizer by simply renee, the Slice, an Epson Stylus and my own laptop to do nothing but digital scrapbook on.

4. I wish for S to be able to get into medic school sooner than later and to FINALLY get that big fire on his shift & in his station's area.

5. I wish that I was more sure of myself. I am always doing things and second guessing myself. I talk myself out of things that I KNOW I can do all of the time.

6. I wish I wasn't such an angry driver. Let's face it: as many drivers as there are on the road, people are bound to do stupid things. I just don't need to get so worked up about it. I'm not an aggressive driver and I don't have [that bad of] road rage, but I do get ticked off fairly easily and take it personally when someone cuts me off. As I leave for work, S often says, "Have a good day, sweetie. I love you! Don't get mad at other drivers!" In that order. I'm not even joking.

7. I wish for less time at work and more time to travel.

8. I wish that someday I will be able to be a good mom. If I am even half the mom to my someday-kids that my mom was to me, they will be the luckiest kids in the whole world. I am really blessed to have been raised by such a great mom (and dad.)

~

I always enjoy Primary Program Sunday. This year I got to be a part of it! Sitting in the stands and watching the congregation was somewhat amusing. As each child stood up to recite their well-rehearsed line, I could tell which parents were theirs by how much they beamed over the rest of the crowd. I could also tell which mom belonged to the goof-ball Sunbeam who decided to shout all of the words to "I Love to See the Temple." Her look was best defined as, "You are in SO much trouble and we WILL be talking about this when we get home."

This has been a great week.

(The kind of week that gives "great week" its definition.)


It started with a trip to a local exhibit revealing human anatomy in plastic form. I like to call it plastic gore--kind of like House of Wax, but more educational. I went with a good friend who could appreciate comments like, "So that's why those transplants need so much blood," and likewise returned, "That's exactly what that person's humerus looked like coming out of their skin the other night." I left feeling slightly ill but definately more appreciative of the complexity of the human body. And amazed than any of us live to be 100.

~

After meeting up with some long-time school buddies for lunch on Wednesday, I came home prepared to spend the evening with my hubby who had the next day off of his other job for fall break. He'd suggested earlier in the week that we head up in the mountains to see some fabulous fall colors. I was game! We hopped in his truck and headed up the canyon. There was this particular place he wanted to go to take pictures on recommendation of a coworker, but we absolutely could not find this place. Assuming his coworker had given him lousy directions, I didn't know what the big deal was. He kept insisting, though, that we find this place.

FINALLY, we found this antiquated building surrounded by a lake and a mill. I started walking around but the husband said he'd feel more comfortable asking permission before we got too far. We went into this building and I realized it was some sort of lodge. When the hostess returned to her desk, assuming we were guests, asked if we were checking in. At the same time:

S: Yes.
E: No, we're jus...wait, what?

Apparently my sneaky (and very thoughtful) hubby had planned a much needed retreat to this luxurious Bed and Breakfast for some much needed R&R. Not only that, but he booked the nicest room that they had. We went to dinner nearby and rented a bunch of DVDs, vowing to stay up all night and sleep all the next day. A couple of lightweights, we barely made it through the first movie and were asleep by 10. It WAS the best night's sleep I've had in weeks, though.

A side view of our accomodations. Our room was the whole top floor (where the eaves are.)

A view out of our private balcony. We kept the door open for a bit that night. The next morning we read a notice suggesting that we keeps windows and doors closed as bats frequent the area.

Isn't this view incredible?

We went home via the scenic route. I can't believe we live so close to this! I see this mountain every morning from the other side.

~

One of the expectations of moving from one season to another is that we will lose our garden. Such was the case this week. I think it's a good thing that plants look so ugly once the first frost hits; it makes it much easier to rip out plants that way! As I was preparing to trim back our parsley plant, I lifted up the leaves and unearthed a nest of daddy-long legs. The events that succeeded this moment can best be defined as a major case of the "heeby-jeebies." Even my hubby who was in the kitchen making lunch (and couldn't understand why I was pounding on the door trying to get in) shuddered once I told him the story. Yuck.

I was going to plant some fall flowers but liked the look of our bare garden so much that I think I'm just going to go minimalist this year and enjoy the bulbs that grow in the spring.

Our small harvest this year.

I went to the parents this week where the focus was grapes! I can't even begin to describe the smell that fills their house once they start to juice these...

~

Proof that purple peppers exist. (Thought I was planting orange peppers. Imagine my surprise!)

~

Last winter my hubby rolled his snowmobile down this hill (which we affectionately named after him...see below). Luckily he was okay. His 'mobile? Not so much. All year it has been stowed away in our garage, booting his truck outside.

This week we moved it out onto our patio for the winter where three fates await it:

(a) It will be sold for parts.

(b) It will be sold as is.

(c) It will sit outside until next spring where it will be moved BACK into the garage and await fates (a) or (b).

So if you know anyone that is interested...

~

Speaking of spiders, we had an infestation this week. (The squeemish may want to skip the last picture altogether.)

I received an e-mail last week.

It was one of those forwarded petition e-mails asking everyone to sign their name on it and that if "x" number of signatures were received, a certain TV program would not be cancelled. First of all, I doubt that this program which has been running for decades would be cancelled. Secondly, I also doubt that a petition of e-signatures would stop a program from being cancelled. Thirdly, if you are the last of the required signatures, who would you send this e-mail to to make sure that this program remained on the air? I rolled my eyes, muttered "oh, brother" under my breath and deleted the e-mail.

These sorts of things bewilder me. Maybe it is the state of mind that our nation is in right now that has me aware of this, but it seems like people in general LIKE to be in a panic over different sorts of things. Not to say that the financial problems aren't very real for a lot of people; I'm sure that many people are facing hardships right now. But even people who are perfectly safe in these times are in a frenzy. It must just be human nature.

This, however, has turned me towards inner reflection. (This is where I get lengthy and philosophical.) I realize that, though I may not be too worried about things that the general public is, I certainly DO worry a lot. I find myself getting caught up in the "what if's" and living years ahead of myself instead of living in the present day. After finding a recent article in a magazine providing suggestions on overcoming worry, my mind was already turned towards ways I could just live in the moment and take life for what it is. Then came President Monson's conference address on Finding Joy in the Journey. It was absolutely what I needed to hear. I'm sure most of you heard it and, if you didn't, I would highly suggest listening to it (or even listening to it again if you did hear it). I've really tried to pay attention this past week to how I respond to different situations as they arise and to incorporate a better attitude when they do. Here are some examples:

-The first thing I noticed right off is that, when I am on my morning run, I generally look down at the ground. I don't know if this is just so I can concentrate or so that I don't trip on anything, but I rarely look up around me. This week, however, I made it a point to look at my surroundings and enjoy the autumn mornings. I felt blessed to live where I do and actually enjoyed myself vs. just going through the routine of exercise. And I didn't trip, either.

-After a particularly bad night at work (the kind of night that gives "Bad Night" its definition) I went through the normal "vent to everyone" process that I always do. Normally I would still be fuming. This time, though, I tried to think of the things that I learned in this situation and the positives that came out if it and what I need to know for next time. Honestly, when I think of the events of this particular night now, it doesn't even bother me.

-Whenever we have an early snow storm, it sort of puts me in a state of depression that winter is inevitable and that I'm stuck inside for the next several months. When learning that we would have snow this week, a friend said, "When God gives you snow...make a snowman or better yet a snowangel." She's absolutely right! After all, snow does eventually melt. Why not enjoy it while it lasts?

I'm not saying that I'm never going to have a bad day or suddenly part from all of my worrying/pessimistic ways, but if this week has been any indication, it's a lot easier to just live day to day and enjoy the moment as it is.

~

On a lighter note, my Fire Man responded on his first call that made the local news. Very exciting! It was dark so I couldn't see him very well, but an appearance is an appearance, right?

~

I had the following conversation on the phone with my husband last night while I was at work. We were talking after he'd gotten home from grocery shopping. While I can't remember specifics, it went something like this:

S: "Hmm, that's strange. I accidentally bought Vampire makeup."

E: "What?"

S: "There was this lady behind me buying Halloween stuff. This must have mistakenly ended up in our things."

E: "That's weird. Hope she doesn't miss it."

S: "Yeah, and I'm sure we'll find some use for it..." He pauses, then calls out to our cat in a sing-song voice, "Bi-lly!"

Poor cat.

~

Teaching Sunbeams has to be the absolute best calling I've ever had. One, those kids are so smart for that age! Two, they absolutely crack me up sometimes. Today during our lesson on How to be an Example, our teacher asked the children ways that Jesus was an example to them. One of the boys turned to me and, with a very serious expression, said, "You know, Santa's really counting on us." Why, yes he is.

It's Time to play Catch-up.

I am currently living about 20 miles southwest of where I grew up. We bought this cute house 3 1/2 years ago and thoroughly love it here:

~

I married this sweet guy 6 years ago:

It might sound cliche, but he absolutely is my best friend. He makes me laugh every day and has taught me to reach beyond myself. He challenges me to be a better person, whether it's something trivial like FINALLY having the courage to get behind a boat on a wake board or something important like being brave enough to finish school despite challenging circumstances. I am really lucky!

~

I graduated from BYU in 2005 and I am currently working at a medical center (ironically) across the street from where I went to high school. I work in the transfusion department which, as anyone who knows me well, is really funny because I hate the sight of blood and I hate even more seeing gross and gory things! Somehow, though, it is such a perfect job for me. I like challenges and this job certainly provides a lot of challenges! I have great coworkers, too.

~

My hubby is living his dream as a firefighter for a local fire department.

He got his badge in May (I'm pinning it on during the badge ceremony in the picture above) and has seen his share of chest pains and car accidents, but no REAL fires yet!

~

We are the proud caretakers of these two.

Billy, a slightly overweight narcoleptic purr-ball whom we adopted 3 years ago from a coworker of my husband's who was suffering from cat-related allergies. She originally found him as a stray 3-4 week old kitten wandering near her house:

And Mally (short for Mallassezia furfur, a type of fungus--hey, I'm a Microbiology major), a wiry tabby who suffers from chronic anxiety. She's the original kitty and she makes sure that we don't forget it. We adopted her 4 years ago from another one of my husband's coworkers whose parents took in a stray cat, only for it to have kittens a few days later. Sadly, the mom died when the kittens were only a few weeks old. Mally was one of those kittens:

They might "just be cats" but they provide us with hours of entertainment and affection. They really are a part of our family!

~

I LOVE to scrapbook. I always scrapbooked through high-school but somewhere amidst the countless papers and endless studying that comes with college, I got out of the habit. I have a very supportive husband who encouraged me to get back into the practice (he says it was because I had too many boxes of pictures just laying around). I tell him he created a monster! Now the question remains: do I love to scrapbook more or buy scrapbook supplies and organize them more?

Either way, it's too much fun turning this:

into this:

~

I also love to spend time outdoors and traveling with friends and family. Every year we go camping here:

(Note: I shouldn't question whether or not it is wise to put a firefighter in charge of the campfire, but that campfire got REALLY big and those trees behind us were REALLY dead.)

And we try to go camping/boating here (though our hectic lives don't always allow it):

And I NEVER get tired of going here! (I got back from trip #5 to Disney World 2 weeks ago):

(The hubby says that there are parts of the U.S. that exist outside of Florida. I don't believe him.)

~

And if I'm home, I spend as much time out here as I like:

Gardening is rewarding. It's GREAT being able to walk outside my back door and pick one of these babies for dinner:

This time of year is bittersweet. While fall is my favorite season of all, it is also sad to say goodbye to summer and spending time outside.